After Conejo Valley Unified School District denied approval of its school, the Bridges Charter School board is taking its petition to the next level.

The group is preparing for a public hearing to gauge community support on Feb. 4.

Bridges Charter School, a proposed K-8 public school based on whole-child education, was developed by Conejo Elementary’s Open Classroom Program teachers and parents. The group wasn’t satisfied with recent district efforts to increase support of the 16year-old program.

As all charter schools do, Bridges needs an authorizer—an outside body—to approve its creation. After CVUSD refused, citing deficiencies in the charter in the areas of home-schooling, special education and fiscal operations, the board presented a petition to the Ventura County Board of Education for possible approval.

“The overarching feeling is very positive,” said Jon Baker, copetitioner for Bridges. “Our limited contact with the Ventura County board has been very positive. They seem to be very open and reflective, and they also have a background of approving charters, while CVUSD has a background of denying them.”

The CVUSD board rejected the petition for the Conejo Valley’s first charter school, MATES (Meadows Arts and Technology Elementary School), a year ago. The school was later approved by the county and opened its doors in the fall. 

The Bridges group was also happy to hear that the county board had recently attended a talk by Daniel Pink, an author and lecturer who encourages creative thinking, Baker said. On Dec. 7, when the Bridges board introduced its petition, the county board talked about Pink’s book “A Whole New Mind,” from which Bridges adopted some of its philosophies.

“That was a big moment,” Baker said.

The county board acknowledged receipt of the Bridges petition at its Jan. 12 meeting. After hearing from the community Feb. 4, the county board plans to vote on Feb. 16 to grant or deny the petition.

Bridges is holding open enrollment from Feb. 1 through March 1.

For more information, visit www.BRIDGEScharter.org.